Flipper Week
Posted: December 8th, 2011 | Author: Tommy Lawlor | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 77 Comments »I’ve always hated the Miami Dolphins. I never liked Don Shula (and I have no idea why…great coach and seems like a great guy). I really hated them when Dan Marino got to town. I hated his man-perm and Isotoner gloves. Then Jimmy Johnson went to Miami and my hatred remained intact.
In recent years, I’ve grown to feel sorry for Flipper and his fans. The Dolphins are a blue collar, physical team that plays old school football. And they lose.
They started 0-7 this year, but are 4-1 since then. They’ve won 3 games by 20 or more points. Flipper no longer sleeps with the fishes. He is now wide awake and kicking butt. I always tell people that the schedule has to be broken down 3 ways. Who do you play? Where do you play them? When do you play them? BUF and MIA seemed like sure wins back in August. We might just lose to both. We got both teams in the middle of a hot streak. This year the Eagles are the Artie Fufkin of the NFL…no timing.
I’ll write out a game preview on Friday. The Dolphins are playing well and we’ve got our work cut out to beat them. Frankly, that’s the best thing possible. This Eagles team does better when worried about the competition than when relaxed and confident.
* * * * *
For SB Nation Philly, I wrote about how well Jason Peters is playing. Jason is having a great year. Pound for pound, he’s probably the best athlete on the Eagles roster. That’s pretty impressive when you think about it.
Originally I was going to include LG Evan Mathis in the piece, but there was a lot to say about Jason all by himself. Mathis is having a really good year. He is one of the best free agent signings in the league, but is flying under the radar because of the Eagles 4-8 record. Mathis isn’t a physically dominant player, but has the skill set to thrive in the Mudd scheme and the Eagles offense. He is a very good athlete. He blocks well on the move and out in space. One of the reasons that WR screens work this year is guys like Jason Kelce, Peters, and Mathis. They’re able to get out in front of the skill players and actually block someone. Nick Cole and Max Jean-Gilles weren’t quite so effective.
It really is amazing to see the transformation of the offensive line in one offseason. The big step for the coming offseason is to re-sign Mathis and to develop Danny Watkins into a better pass blocker.
We do need to find some young OL to develop for depth. Julian Vandervelde has potential. We need at least one OT prospect and another interior guy. King Dunlap may stick around, but I’m sure Jamaal Jackson is gone. Not sure what to make of Winston Justice. Do the Eagles keep him as a #3 OT? His knee still isn’t 100 percent. He might get cut or dealt.
* * * * *
Someone asked me about the big mistakes on defense. Is it lack of talent or bad coaching? That’s a faulty choice. I wish it were that simple.
There are times when it is talent. Joselio Hanson had no chance against Wes Welker. Wes ate him for lunch. I think those instances are limited, though.
Coaching is part. When Casey Matthews was burned on the wheel route back in September, that was bad. The Giants beat us with that last year. The coaches should have beaten that play into the heads of the LBs. There were times early in the year when there was lots of confusion between LBs and DBs as to who was covering who. The coaches should have had that stuff worked out in preseason.
The biggest problem is sloppiness. Defense is about assignments. Do your job. Cover your gap. Cover your zone. Cover your receiver. The 2011 Eagles are terrible at this. Some of it is ignorance. Jamar Chaney was clueless in coverage last year. He’s struggling there again this year. He was the fastest LB at the Combine in 2010, but that speed doesn’t do you any good if you don’t know where to go.
I also think too many guys are being over-aggressive. Nate Allen bit on the play fake vs NE and gave up the long TD to Welker. Nate knows better. The Pats ran the ball a lot on the first few drives. They pounded it into our heads that they’d run. They had just enough success to move the chains. Then Nate bit on a play fake and the Pats got what they wanted. All Nate had to do was his job, stay deeper than the deepest. Instead he comes flying up and leaves Welker wide open. Nate wasn’t told to do that by coaches. He was just too set on trying to make a big play that he lost sight of his assignment. Players must play smart and be disciplined. He wasn’t on that play and it cost us a TD.
Finally, there are some guys who get greedy. Asante is #1 on this list. He’s done it his whole career, but this year he’s made some decisions that defy logic. Asante is the one responsible for leaving Larry Fitzgerald alone with Jaiquawn Jarrett. That’s not my opinion. It is a fact. Other DBs in the locker room were pissed at Asante for that. I’m sure other defensive players were upset with him.
People want to blame scheme, but that’s rarely the problem. On any given play in any given game, the defense has defenders assigned to each receiver or each zone. There are some blitzes where guys are left open by design, but we’re not a big blitzing team. We can’t use that excuse.
The coaches are at fault for not getting through to the players to stop taking chances and/or making mistakes. There are a variety of reasons for this. Young/new coaches. Semi-new scheme. Young/new players. Greedy DBs that wear #22.
Getting a new MLB will help. Getting rid of Asante will help. Having a veteran DC who knows offenses and how to stop them, as well as how to teach defense…that will be a major help.
Tommy,
I can’t wait reading about who you like at OT. Regarding my earlier post:
I’ve read multiple mockdrafts, that have us picking an OT. The reasoning is that Todd is NOT having a good year, ranking near the bottom in every category (7 QB hits, 32 QB hurries). Is Todd having a bad year, as they suggest??
Todd has struggled recently with pass protection. Early on he was good. Maybe having Vince in there has hurt him. Maybe teams now know how to attack Todd. I’m not sure. I think he’ll stay at RT. He’s shown good potential.
Thanks…
Reading (and seeing) how well Mathis and Kelce have played this year, do you still believe it was worth using a 1st round pick on Watkins? My draft strategy would be to always target premium positions or athletic freaks in the 1st… Not an OT turned G… With that said, I like Watkins and his potential, just not as our 1st round pick…
In terms of a pure “best player available” view, I think Watkins was not great value, however, RG was a huge need for the Eagles and they targeted a guy they liked who they thought would be a quality player for them. Not that you are implying it, but I think it is clear so far that Watkins is not a bust. We might have been able to get more value, but at least we have a first round pick that is being productive at a position that was of significant need.
I agree that it was a need, and that Watkins has played adequately, but I think we could have gotten someone just as good later in the draft… I could be wrong though…
In today’s NFL, having good OG play is essential. Nothing makes a QB more nervous than knowing some big ugly dude is going to show up right in his face less than 3 seconds after the ball is snapped.
Where would you rate the importance of that position?? I think QB, RB, LOT, WR, DE, DT, CB is more important, and is what I would call premium positions…
Shawn Andrews played guard well enough to be a 1st round pick. Regardless of the priority of the position, he had 1st round impact on the game. If Watkins does that (and hopefully lasts a little longer) he’ll be worth the pick.
I think that the importance of the DT needs to be countered with OG… and to be honest, I would drop RB off your list. Those guys can be great, but don’t impact a team for years on end like an Oline does. RBs just don’t have long enough careers, and if your Oline is good enough you can compensate to an extent for an “average” RB… in my opinion.
Tommy mentioned awhile back how in today’s NFL the RG is left on an island often because of the way pass protections are slid to the left from center to LT.
I think it’s important to have that good RG based on that.
Go look at the draft board, there weren’t great players available when we took Watkins.
#24 Cameron Jordan 14 tackles 0 sacks
#25 James Carpenter, struggled at RT before going on IR
#26 Jonathan Baldwin, 14 172 1
#27 Jimmy Smith 8g 5-2
#28 Mark Ingram 122 474 5
#29 Gabe Carimi IR
#30 Muhammad Wilkerson 20 tackles, 1 sack
#31 Cam Heyward
#32 Derreck Sherrod
#33 Ras-I Dowling, 2g, 2 tackles
#34 Aaron Williams, 14 tackles
The lockout really hurt rookies, which makes the choice of Marsh in the 3rd rd much smarter, if the top CBs can’t start, then drafting a project with high upside later on and an OG starting in his rookie year may work out better.
After the top 20 picks or so, few starters in this draft
#35 Dalton
#37 Jabaal Sheard DE (37 tackles, 5.5 sacks)
#39 Akeem Ayers LB (39 tackles, 2 sacks)
#44 Titus Young WR (31 436 2)
#48 Stefen Wisniewski OG
#58 Torrey Smith WR (32 645 5)
#59 Greg Little WR (50 513 1)
#62 Daniel Thomas RB (133 504 0)
#70 Justin Houston OLB (30 tackles 3 sacks
#71 DeMarco Murray RB (159 872 2TD, 25 177)
#84 Mason Foster MLB (41 tackles, 2 sacks)
#99 KJ Wright SLB (28 tackles, 1 sack)
#101 Sam Acho OLB (23 tackles, 5 sacks)
#105 Roy Helu RB (97 456 2 TDs, 42 309)
#122 Chris Hairston OG
#148 Denarius Moore WR (24 410 4 TD)
#150 Jason Pinkston OG
#153 Richard Sherman CB (30 tackles, 2 Int)
#165 Pernell McPhee DT (15 tackles, 6 sacks)
#191 Jason Kelce C
#193 Brian Rolle LB (31 tackles)
#202 Jacquian Williams LB (32 tackles)
Although the players you’ve mentioned taken after Watkins in round one haven’t performed at an elite level, that doesn’t mean they wouldn’t have in an Eagles uniform… I think Cameron Jordan would have been great as a pass rushing DT a la Jenkins, but we’ll never know… Jabaal Sheard was another player that at least some analysts had a 1st round grade on. He would have been much better too in my opinion. And if you really wanted a G as your first pick, you could have traded down and picked Wisniewski who has been excellent for the Raiders this year…
I wanted Jordan once he fell that far.
Same… I really thought we were gonna grab him.
Marty is talking about how D. Jackson has been a class act the last couple of weeks… Is he simply trying to talk up his value, or does he truly believe what he says??
What do you think we can possibly get for Asante? I hope we can get a 2nd, but the other teams know we won’t pay him 8 mio. next year… I fear we simply have to cut him…
Tommy,
Can you write a post sometime about our scouting department?? Why have we been bad at drafting on defense? What can we do to change that? We HAVE to have a good draft defensively!!!
Reading comments about Jarrett on twitter (I think it was Jeff McLane) it seems like he has a LONG way to go. He can’t even get on ST… Wow!! I really hope he can turn it around!!
The old cliche is that you can’t judge a draft until 3 years out. While I think there is a lot of truth to that, especially in cases like Graham and Allen who got injured after having OK rookie seasons, I also think it is rare to see an early round pick struggle this much to get on the field in his rookie season but then live up to his early round selection. It is still very early, so I am not ready to give up on Jarrett, but so far, that has been an absolutely awful pick. I know earlier in the season, Tommy said he doesn’t see the need for getting a safety, but at the time, it was only a few games past Coleman’s 3 INTs and Nate Allen had a couple solid but not great games. I am curious to know if Tommy’s feelings have changed recently. Personally, I think safety has moved up to a priority right behind LB (possibly multiple LBs). I just am not comfortable with either of our starting safeties right now and Jarrett has not shown that he can be a reliable insurance plan.
Broderick Bunkley had a terrible rookie season, then was a solid to a very good starter for us from year 2 to last year.
I used the word “rare” because clearly there will be exceptions to that. While it happens on some occasions, it is not normally what occurs. Furthermore, while Bunkley was certainly not a bust, he was never great. I don’t think he ever lived up to how high we moved up to draft him.
Sadly we didn’t move anywhere to draft Bunkley.. Had we moved up only two spot, we could have drafted Ngata!
You’re right, for some reason I was thinking the draft we traded up for McDougle. Either way though, Bunkley was still the 14th pick of the draft, and while he was never awful after his first season, he certainly did not make you think he was worth the 14th overall pick.
Sadly we didn’t move anywhere to draft Bunkley.. Had we moved up only two spot, we could have drafted Ngata!
10’s a a Free Agent the smart thing would be to talk down his value
I realize he’s a free agent after the season, but I assume that we tag him!! Then we trade him for a 1st + something else… (maybe ;-))
Tommy,
You’ve beaten the hell out of Asante this year, and rightfully so. But if he’s really that bad, and DRC is really much better outside rather than the slot, why aren’t we just benching Asante for DRC (forgetting his injury for a few)?
Are we trying to salvage some trade value?
2 things. I think the team is trying to preserve draft value. That’s tough, but might be the smart thing.
Also, Juan is new DC. I’m sure he’s trying to “win the locker room” so to speak and benching Asante may seem like a daunting thought to him. This is where a veteran coach would come in and run the defense like a dictator. He wouldn’t care about egos. Perform or sit. His way or the highway. Essentially, Asante is taking advantage of Juan.
Didn’t think about that “Juan, the nice guy” aspect. Good point.
Asante has clearly deserved the criticism he received this year, but it was only last year that he had one of the best seasons of his career. He was easily among the second tier of top CBs in the league just behind Nnamdi and Revis. Why do you think there has been such a dramatic drop off since last year? His attitude of free lancing and not necessarily sticking to what the coaches were telling him is not something we are hearing about for the first time. Are teams just all of a sudden finding ways to take advantage of him more or has he also lost a step from last year?
As a separate note, I don’t want to defend Asante by any means, clearly he is playing poorly. But considering that every single one of our CBs have looked worse this year compared to last year (Nnamdi, Asante, DRC, Hanson. You could possibly even add Hughes and maybe even the lack of production from Marsh), are the coaches, whether it is Juan or the DB coach, doing a poor job at using these guys (and I’m asking beyond Asante simply not listening)?
He fell off last year, his last elite season was 2008.
He’s lost a step this year and is cheating more but making fewer plays in front of him, and is totally dead meat without deep safety help when a WR pulls a double move.
He’s be a solid zone CB for a couple more years if he could tackle, of course if the Queen had balls she’d be King!
Your stats will be inflated if the guy playing opposite you is Dmitri Patterson.
I call it the Nnamdi effect.
There are some that want a replacement ie Zach Brown at weak side. I’m thinking Rolle could do well with the right DC and off season. Doesn’t Rolle have the best chance at staying at his position and starting next year when compared to the other LB’s? I will refrain from saying “he’s earned it,” although that was my first thought. Can he truly only be measured in terms of backup at this point?
Rolle has played well enough to deserve the chance to fight for WLB next year. I don’t think he’s played so well that he has the position locked down. Jason Kelce is the C of the present and future. No questions. Rolle might be the WLB of the future. Slight difference.
Upgrading him isn’t a priority, but I wouldn’t pass up the chance to add a good WLB if the fit/value was right.
What a terrible thing to say about your own son.
Tough love.
Tommy,
Would like to get your thoughts on a couple:
1 – What are your thoughts on tacking coaching perspective? Do you think coaching plays a major role or it depends mostly on the players executing? Why do you think we see the same fundamental problem week-in and week out?
2 – In-game adjustments are a key. Juan’s lack of adjustments in-game (ex: same wham block thrown @ Babin in Seattle for the huge runs). Juan talks about fundamentals and B.S during the press-conferences. Every team has to be fundamental i.e the minimum requirement and is obvious. What he has been failing is the in-game adjustments. Part of it lack of experience. And could the other part be he doesn’t have the talent? Don’t you agree and your thoughts?
Tackling is a problem at every level of football. ESPN highlights have made players fall in love with hitting instead of focusing on form tackling.
Jarrad Page was the main culprit in the first month. Things have gotten better since then, even though it may not seem like it. I don’t understand why Jamar Chaney can’t tackle. He’s just missing.
Asante doesn’t believe in tackling.
DRC isn’t a good tackler normally, but is awful in the slot. I think his confidence is way down. I expect him to look very different next year when playing outside.
Nate and Kurt have generally tackled well. They have had some costly misses. What has caused those specific misses? I don’t know. I’d have to go back and study them. I think it is a case of trying to do too much. Just make the tackle. Be confident, aggressive. Don’t try to be Ronnie Lott and land the perfect shot.
Tommy, you honestly think Nate has generally tackled well? Most every game I’m shaking my head with my friend saying how awful he looks. I think he’s one maybe two solid games that I can remember, but everything else has been dreadful.
He’s been the 2nd biggest disappointment on the team in my eye, behind Vick. I think Colman has generally played well, but Allen?? It seems to me like he’s playing very timid.
In-game adjustments…
Juan has made some, but that’s clearly a weakness. A veteran DC would make a big difference in this area.
Thanks Tommy for the replies and thoughts.
Right now, I am thinking about the future rage in Philly sports nation IF Reid with his strong authority in the organization, stays and brings back Juan as the DC sighting the excuse of lack of full training camp.
So wait a minute…. Are you saying that the Patriots RAN the ball to set up the play action? How innovative. Pay attention Andy.
Tommy, I realize you didn’t want to blame players or coaches, but reading that, it sure sounds like the problem is the coaches. All the things you mention come down to the coach not adequately managing his players: making sure the best guys for the team are in there, that they are ready to play, that they’re in position to play…
And reading your article about Jason Peters made me wonderr why isn’t here the eligible tackle on the TE plays? I’ve seen him in space with an attitude, but I’d love to see him in space with the attitude and the ball!
And… he is converted from TE.
We need the super Ace formation with Herrimans and Peters as the TEs and Dunlap and Justice as the OTs… imagine the possibilities with that formation.
Mac….awesome formation except Andy would use that lineup and throw in a ghost reverse then try to hit Desean on a 50 yard go route…..and it was third and inches!
Sad, but probably true.
Sad? A ghost reverse with that line would be awesome! All those roadgraders inside and DeSean distracting the secondary?
“the coach not adequately managing his players: making sure the best guys for the team are in there, that they are ready to play, that they’re in position to play”
Sort of. Story time. I was a pretty smart kid back in HS days. A woman in my neighborhood asked if I would tutor her son. I needed the money for Burger King and Led Zeppelin tapes so of course I took the gig.
I sat with the kid and went over his homework. I checked his assignments and did everything I could to help him make progress. Didn’t work. I had the brains. I gave the effort. I just wasn’t connecting with the kid. Since I was new to tutoring I didn’t know any tricks. His mom then looked for another solution. He’s probably now a serial killer and its all my fault for not getting through.
Juan is telling the players what to do. For some reason…in the heat of the battle…those lessons aren’t sticking. Players are going with instincts instead of carrying out their assignments. Maybe Juan isn’t teaching them long enough. Maybe he’s not explaining things correctly. Something isn’t working.
I have no real way of knowing, but if I had to take a guess I would say the players aren’t real confident in Juan and maybe thats why they’re tuning him out a little bit. Tough to really even speculate without being there day in and day out to observe.
I understand the phenomenon you’re describing, but some of the players underperforming here we high performers for their previous teams. A lot of the mistakes seem to be below the mendoza level of player understanding. … This sounds like it’s on the coach.
To answer your first question: It’s both. Juan doesn’t seem very adroit at the chess match, and he doesn’t seem to have a scheme with an identity that plays to the player’s strengths. I think that’s hurting everyone. At the same time, Chaney is playing poorly, Allen is playing poorly, Jordan can’t get off blocks, Rolle is serviceable and playing ok, but he’s still an undersized rookie, and Coleman is playing pretty well, but making a very costly mistake on occasion. That’s 5 players up the middle of your defense, and supposed to be the brains of the D, that are either not starting quality or just barely. You can’t cover up that many holes in your defense and I think the Eagles are finding that our the hard way.
That said, the real problem is the -13 turnover ratio. Even with this poor defensive performance, they would still be in great shape if they were +7 or so, like the top teams in the league.
http://sb4sf.blogspot.com/2011/12/what-now-philadelphia-eagles-part-2.html my second part to the eagles post from two days ago.
Great “Spinal Tap” reference.
The review of the 2011 Eagles season is merely a two-word review which simply read “Shit Sandwich.”
That’s not real, is it?
Long shot here, but Asante and one of our 2nd round picks for a good MLB?
DeMeco Ryan. On the texans. Trade Asante straight up.
E.J. Henderson of the Vikings perhaps?
They have no CB’s and Asante is too old to get a star player in return.
DeMeco is lost on the texans. He is a 4-3 MLB. Wade Phillips changed them to a 3-4. He barely sees the field and is out of place when he does They are paying him well. They will look to move him. He is young and on par skill wise with Tulluch. Give them a player an a 2013 pick. Henderson is old. Ryan is somebody they can build around for years. That would free up them using their 1st on a QB,DT (Devon stills), or WR depending on how high they get. They could ship a 2nd to Houston for DeMeco or use both on the two best OLB on the board.
Well, pretty undeniable logic that!
Here’s another reason to hate the dolphins. In the end of the movie ‘Ace Ventura: Pet Detective’, they had the Dolphins come back and win against the eagles. Not to mention Ace beating the hell out of the mascot…
LACES OUT.
LOL i came in here to post this. glad i searched first.
i can’t believe tommy didnt mention this. his references are usually top notch. i’ll assume he just drank too much PBR and couldnt think right anymore.
Quality home footage of Tommy’s childhood obsession with football.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iy1dXPuI_gE&feature=g-sptl
Now that’s a kid we can all be proud of.
Well done, junior.
Tommy.. urgent question… When are you getting your “Tebow Time” tattoo?
Tommy
Getting rid of Reid is the answer. Its not an emotional response. He just cant make hard decisions anymore. Cut guys? No Coaching changes? No He even came out this week defiant to the end saying he wont fire or demote Castillo. We are just one big disfuctional family covering our eyes to the reality that this team with this leadership can no longer win. They may all like Coach Reid but they arent winning and your gut should tell you something is wrong this year rather than other years (even in the other down Reid years). How many players have to leave this team and become “useful” to other franchises before you realize this coach and its evaluation process is broken and needs to be replaced. Last year I was so looking forward to the draft. I was all up in the hype of all the draft picks and the rebuilding of this team especially the defense. Now that I see what we picked and how they play (how come noone mentioning Macho Harris and how we should just wait for him to develop like Nate Allen Kurt Coleman Chaney Haney (punter) the list goes on and on and on … we dont draft well OVERALL. Why pick with 10 picks when you could trade some and get a few players that might be useful. Instead we have this team. I dont look forward to this upcoming draft if the same people are picking the players. Its not exciting to watch a team fail. The Eagles are dysfuctional and like dysfuctional family we all stand behind dad even though we know hes failing. Reid and the GM need to change. A new football mind needs to be established and soon. Cut the loyalty crap. Thank Coach Reid sever your emotional ties and move on. It will help all parties including the Coach.
To be fair, Reid was carping on Sean McDermott’s job security right before firing him. It’s the best way to keep these guys doing their jobs and focusing on game prep – don’t make them have to answer questions like “Your head coach was non-committal on your potentially coming back next season. What does that say to you about your future with this organization?”
He put his neck out when he brought Castillo. His main priority is that this team wins not protecting those dearest to him. Actually I think a in season firing might have done this team some good in preparation for next season (talking about Castillo). Dallas fired their head coach and at least it refocused them a bit towards the end of last season and into the beginning of this one.
As for Sean Mcdermott, and Reids propensity to lie. Years ago he would have never done that. He did that to Mcnabb (before he was traded), he did that to Kolb (about his starting job), he did it to Mcdermott, and now hes doing it to Castillo (most likely). Reids lost his way. Lets set him free so he can find himself again and so we can find the Eagles again.
Please please I cant sit through another season like this. An upcoming team that stinks yes (I can sit through), this team — another season of this team and Reid’s empty promises No.
2 things.
First, Reid isn’t going to discuss Castillo’s future with a month left. No coach would do that. Stupid question by the media based on a guess by Mike Florio. Mike said Reid is going to face that decision in the offseason. He didn’t say Reid has already been told to make the decision.
2nd…the McDermott thing wasn’t Reid changing his mind. Andy didn’t want to fire the guy on the spot. Andy thinks highly of Sean and wanted to handle the situation in a certain way. I’ve covered this subject before. The McD firing is a complicated situation. Andy was trying to do what was best for the team and for his friend. He knew Sean had to go, but also wanted to help him get a new job. Notice how quickly Sean was linked to other jobs? That wasn’t by accident. Reid helped him.
There’s a lot that goes on behind the scenes. Reid could actually help himself if the truth got out more, but he doesn’t care about his image or guys like Florio and the reports they come up with that simply don’t know all the facts.
I dont think Reid can make the hard decisions anymore. Its so evident. Guys could be cut, veteran guys could be brought in and coaching “adjustments” made. I dont think noone would have thought Reid was doing Castillo wrong if Reid had provided a “defensive consultant” (Someone with experience) to help the young players and the defense along. He didnt. He is letting his loyalty to Castillo (and of course his decision to hire him in the first place) get the best of him. That is what seperates the Andy Reid of the past and the Andy Reid today. And thats why he needs to go. Hes lost sight of whats best for a winning football team. He cant make the hard decisions anymore to win. And as we as a franchise try to cross the Super Bowl mark, we need someone that has the capacity to bring us to a higher level. That coach with that ability is out there. Hopefully first we can bring ourselves to fire Reid and second make the best choice for a head coach that will bring this team a Super Bowl(s) for years to come like those teams who do time and time again in our very own division.
Firing a friend of 10 years is easy – Sean McDermott.
Firing several assistants you worked with for several years is easy.
Letting your long time PK leave is easy.
Letting go of a hard working, overachiever like Q Mikell is easy.
Trading your franchise QB (McNabb) is easy.
Benching your new franchise QB (Kolb) is easy.
Yeah, right.
These are names to me and you. They are friends to Andy. He genuinely cares about them. Kolb was the newest of the guys listed, but Andy was incredibly close to Kevin and his family.
Andy is absolutely still able to make tough decisions. More than ever the phrase “it’s not personal, it’s business” is true to him.
Andy isn’t making the decisions YOU want made. Huge difference.
I’m still on the fence with his future, but this is another bogus argument. That’s why I wrote the posts for/against Reid. Evaluate him based on fact as much as possible. Don’t come up with a theory and then cherry pick situations to make it true. Study the whole situation.
You don’t like Andy. You want him gone. That’s fine. Just be fair to the man when evaluating / criticizing. There are plenty of facts to deal with.
(I wouldnt have gotten rid of probably our best kicker ever Akers Tommy or Mikell especially when we have nothing to replace him with that is competively good, and for Andy trading Kolb might be one of his biggest mistake ever (for him) because he made Kolb to fit his system perfectly and I love McNabb I think we should release Vince Young and bring McNabb back as this years backup — whether he is fried or not)
I do like Andy. His decisions have been horrible this year for a team that was suppose to contend for a Superbowl. This team is even under his normal standards which is ” a team that aleast makes the playoffs and has a fighting chance” In teams past Tommy, he brought people and players from outside the organization to help this team win. THEY ARENT WINNING TOMMY or even playing like they can win. You can say many things about my response but my fondest for Coach Reid is not one thing you can attack. I just realize the writing is on the wall with this coach. His time to change teams has come. When he hired A FRIEND to be his DC he lost sight of whats needed to win a football game. I question his judgement in loyalty to people over loyalty to winning. He made have traded or fired some of his friends before but it hasnt resulted in a better football team. I question this coach’s ability to make sound football decisions over making his friends and players happy. I want to see it on the field Tommy and again we should want to get to the Superbowl. Dont forget that all of our NFC east division opponents have multiple Superbowl trophies at different times with different coaches with different players. We have zero.
I have no problem when you question how sound his decisions were. Andy’s done some strange things.
Your earlier point is that he can’t make tough decisions and that simply isn’t true.
Winning? Never question Andy’s desire to win. Or any coach’s. They know that they keep their job if they win. They get fired for losing.
Plus, they know any legacy will be based on Super Bowls.
Please understand that Andy wants to win a SB as much if not more than you or I want to see the team do it. For us, it would be a celebratory moment. For him, it would be a life altering event.
You disagree with Andy on what he does and/or how he does some things. We all do. That doesn’t mean he’s dumb. It doesn’t mean he doesn’t want to win. Andy pours his soul into the Eagles.
He makes decisions that he thinks are right. He knows things you and I don’t because he’s there in the building every day. We’re outsiders. We judge based on what we know, not on what he knows.
I’m speaking from personal experience.
I used to be hard on Andy for various issues. I started to get some behind the scenes info from various sources and found out that often when I disagreed with Andy…I was wrong. That’s not true for every criticism, but it was more than I wanted to admit initially.
Again I like Andy. I WANT Andy to succeed. He has the most wins for any Eagles coach and he is one of the longest tenured coaches in this league. That being said its not what moves I wanted him to make its just good moves I wanted him to make. I defended him and talked Andy up when he made the decision about Castillo. I told everyone — he knows whats best for the Eagles: this is going to be good! And when they decided to get rid of players I liked like Akers, I said to myself — Reid knows what hes doing: The Eagles will be fine. When Matthews was out there as the middle linebacker, again I said hey its going to be good Reid knows something we dont we are going to be surprised… on and on I can go. But realistically how can a coach with this much experience allow this team to come on the field this year? Safety, Linebacker no experience defensive coordinator with no safety net for him to succeed (veteran advisor).. what changes has he made this year so we can win now ? Let Page go ? Page earned that. I just wish we could jettison alott more of the secondary and Im not talking Asante. I may not understand the “inner workings” of the Eagles and I know Reid is a capable nice guy and coach but I see the result on the field. Other teams have “inner working” issues but they can field a compentant team on the field and even win a Superbowl. This is not a rebuilding year for the Eagles the sky was the limit. Its not wrong to expect this team to be good this year at least capable. If Dallas manages to pull it together and somehow push past Green Bay and somehow win the Superbowl whose going to be hurting — you and me and the Eagles fans Tommy and real bad again. We still have zero trophies.
Quick Off-season: (Tommy, feel free to steal something for your ‘King For A Day’ post!)
Hire Spagnuolo as the new DC
Tag ‘n’ Trade DeSean Jackson for a 2nd + 4th to St. Louis
Trade Asante Samuel for DeMeco Ryans
Draft: No trades…
1st (6) CB Morris Claiborne (LSU)
2nd (34) from St. Louis WR Dwight Jones (UNC)
2nd (38) DE Melvin Ingram (South Carolina)
2nd (47) from Arizona OLB Danny Trevathan (Kentucky)
3rd (70) OT Zebrie Sanders (Florida State)
4th (98) from St. Louis DT Derek Wolfe (Cincinatti)
4th (104) WR Ryan Broyles (Oklahoma)
4th (110) from Tamba Bay RB Isaiah Pead (Cincinatti)
5th OC Grant Garner (Oklahoma State)
6th QB Chandler Harnish (North. Illinois)
6th from Denver (Joe Mays) P Brian Anger (California)
6th from New England (T. White) OG Stephen Good (Oklahoma)
Interesting stuff. I love Trevathan. Big fan of Jones. Wolfe is growing on me.
Why go for a Punter? Dissatisfied with Chas Henry or just a fan of Anger’s?
Tommy, a hypothetical if you would. How does one sell a new defensive coordinator that he can bring in his guys, oh, except my guy who WAS the defensive coordinator. He needs a spot on your crew and everyone’s gotta make nice. Does that not scream inherent conflict?
Juan won’t be forced on the guy in some critical role. Andy wouldn’t do that to the new DC. They can create a role for Juan. He seems to be universally liked and he knows football. There’s always room for a guy like that on the staff. Juan’s failure this year is due to experience. He’s smart and knows how to coach. He’s just not ready to run a defense.
Not sure which part of the Artie Fufkin link is more apropos: the “bad timing part” or the part where he bends over and demands to get his ass kicked.
Asante Samuel is a 30+ year-old CB who only plays one side, who doesn’t play man to man well, who doesn’t play bump and run, who likes to free lance, and won’t tackle — and who seems to have lost a step. Plus, he’s owed well over $5MM next year.
So exactly why would another team give up a premium player or draft choice for Samuel?
A 4th rounder maybe for Asante and some cash. But a good player in his prime? Or a 2nd round pick? Seems too hard to believe.